Engineering & The Economy
More Engineering Deficit Mythology
In the ongoing debate over the impact of offshoring on the American workforce, BusinessWeek notes a new study arguing that the engineering deficit may be a myth. This new study by Vivek Wadhwa of Duke University points out that “Indian and Chinese numbers [of engineers] can be wildly exaggerated, while America’s are understated.” The reason for these discrepancies in data reporting stems from the fact that India and China use different, looser criteria than the United States in defining what an engineer is, giving them artificially inflated numbers. In fact, when applying a consistent definition of an engineer, the U.S. graduates more engineers per capita than either of these two rising superpowers.
While optimistic, this finding does not mean that the engineering deficit is just a myth. As cited in an earlier Engineering &… post, the number of engineering degrees granted in the United States has risen, while companies are having an increasingly difficult time filling their more specialized technical positions. One reason for this, as BusinessWeek points out, is that
Many of the U.S. engineers who are getting displaced lack the more demanding skills required by American tech companies today. Because routine tasks can be done more cheaply offshore, many executives say, they need U.S. engineers who can rapidly move on to next-generation technologies, work well with customers, and manage R&D teams.
The fact that only these highly demanding positions remain open to the American workforce discourages many from entering the engineering field. Unless engineers graduate with the necessary skills to enter a workforce that is increasingly limited by offshoring, America’s engineering deficit will only continue to grow.
